Improvement in trunks



UNITED STATES .PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS J. MAssIE, 0E AEEINGTON, vIEGINIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN TRUNKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 154,697, dated September 1, 1874; application filed April 4, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:V

. the outer trunk being shown open, and part being broken away to show the ballasting weight. Fig. 4 is an end view of the inner trunk.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

My invention has for its object to'furnish an improved. trunk which shall be so strong and durable as to be capable of withstanding the knocks, jars, and falls incident to travel, and, which will prevent its contents from being turned upside down and shaken out of place. The invention relates to mounting or suspending a cylindrical trunk on trunnions so as to revolve within said shell, and to providing the inner trunk with hinged loops for supporting it when removed from the shell or trunk-case, as hereinafter described.

The outer cylindrical shell A of ,the trunk is made of any suitable material, and-strengthened by inner ribs and outer bands, which will be preferably connected by rivets passing through the shell. The heads of the latter are, of course, circular. The trunk A is made in ytwo parts, the plane of division crossingthe vertical diameterat a distance from its upper end equal to about one-quarter the length of said diameter, or at such a point that the inner trunk may be readily put into it and taken out. The upper part, which serves for a lid, is hinged at its side edge to the side edge of the lower part, a hinge being placed at each rib. The illustrated means of locking are eyes B on the upper hinged part of the shell7 and on the lower part a sliding bar with tongues c', and provided with a hinged hasp, D d. The cover or upper part of the trunk is held against longitudinal movement by dowel-pins E, attached to the edge of the one part of the ends or heads, and which enter holes in the adjacent edge of the other part. F is a curved arm, the upper end of which is attached to the end part of the lid, and whichhas a stop formed upon its lower end to catch upon a keeper attached to the lower part of said trunk A, to prevent the lid from falling back when raised 0r opened. The ends. of the trunk A are provided with legs Gr, placed in grooves in the said ends, and kept in place by keepers H, which legs or bars are provided with ring or other convenient handles at their upper ends, and may be pushed out when the trunk is standing to prevent it from rolling while being used. I is the inner trunk, which is made in the form of a hollow cylinder, and of such a size as VVto fit into and revolve freely in the outer trunk A. The inner trunk I may be made in the same way as the outer trunk A, or it may be made of lighter material; and its parts are secured to each other at their rear edges by hinges, and at their forward edges by an ordinary trunk-lock or other convenient fastening. To the centers of the ends of the inner trunk I are attached pivots, which enter grooves in the ends of the lower part of the outer trunk A, and rest upon halfbearings J attached to said ends. The pivots Vof the trunk I arehelddown upon the half-bearings J by the half-bearings K,theupper ends of which are flanged to overlap the edges of the lower parts of the ends of the trunk A, so that the edges of the upper parts of said ends may rest upon them, and hold them and the inner trunk I in place. By this construction the inner trunk I can be readily removed from the outer trunk A, and the two parts used as two independent trunks for home use. L is a bar, the ends of which are bent inward at an acute angle, and are hinged to the lower part of the ends of the inner trunk I, so that it may be turned down, as shown in Fig. 4, to serve as a foot to keep the said trunk I from turning when Vremoved from the trunk A. The bail or loop L, when not required for use, may be turned up into a groove in the end of the trunk I, where it is secured in place by a button. Similar loops L may be attached to the ends of the outer trunk A,if desired. In the A, substantially 'as herein shown and debottom of the inner trunk I is secured a scribed.

weight, M, of suoient size to keep the trunk 2. The trunk provided with the hinged I always right; side up, however muoh the loop L, substantially .rasend for the purpose outer trunk A may be rolled about.

Having thus described my inventiom claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination of the inner pivoted and ballasted trunk I with the outer trunk specified.

THOMAS JAMES MAssrE.

Witnesses:

JN0. T. WILLARD, E. W. SHEDSON. 

